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Easy is the Way
Easy is the Way is the final episode of Season 1 of NBC's The Black Donnellys. It was the series finale before the show was cancelled by NBC in 2007. Synopsis Tommy, from advice from Detective Frankie Stein, decides to leave town with his family fearing for their safety however Jimmy won't leave until he kills Dokey. Jenny finally deals with Samson while Nicky handles Alo for the last time. Before leaving, Tommy calls Jenny to come with his family, but no one at the diner picks up the phone. After much convincing, Jimmy decides to leave with his family. As the Donnellys, Joanie and Joey are about to leave, Dokey blocks them off and what ensures to be a bloody encounter. Plot After sparing Dokey’s life, Tommy’s had enough, and decides to save himself and his family, no matter what the stakes. Kevin thinks they should have killed Dokey - no one would have ratted them out. But Tommy doesn’t want to spend his life in jail, the killing has to stop, and they can’t hide forever. He orders Kevin to call Sean and have him take their mother Helen to New Jersey, then takes off to implement a plan. Meanwhile, Jimmy shaves the rest of his head, kisses Joanie goodbye, and leaves for a day of work. Samson sucks up to Reilly, getting on his good side to threaten Jenny, who’s furious. Tommy stops by the diner, intending to tell Jenny everything, but leaves abruptly when he spies Samson. Jenny tries to call him back, but it’s no use. At the hospital, Dokey tells Earl that they’re going to kill all four Donnelly brothers. Strange - none of his guys have showed up, and no one’s returning his calls. Dokey orders Earl to set up a meet for all the guys at the union hall. Alo calls Vinny, demanding a meet with Nicky. Sean and Nadine make out in his car. She puts the brakes on with news that she’s a virgin, saving herself for marriage, which Sean thinks is kind of cool. Neighborhood denizen Dickie shows up at the Firecracker to gift the guys with a rocket launcher and grenades. Jimmy grabs some grenades and leaves with Kevin and Joey to find Dokey and blow him up. Tommy pulls Kevin back and sends him to take care of Helen and Sean. Tommy meets with Frankie, offering to wear a wire and testify to bring Dokey down. Frankie thinks it’s no use: Dokey will kill Tommy, no matter what. Frankie offers to put some cops outside the bar and the Donnelly apartment, but there’s a good chance that they’ll be on Dokey’s payroll. His advice: leave town and don’t come back. This brings memories of many failed family vacations. The Donnellys never seem to be able to get out of the neighborhood. Tommy calls Kevin at home to say there’s been a change of plans: now the whole family’s leaving town. Grabbing hidden wads of cash, Tommy tracks down Sean and explains the situation. Sean doesn’t want to go. He loves Nadine and wants to marry her, and if he leaves, she’ll hate him. Tommy points out that if Sean loves Nadine, he should protect her by saying goodbye. Alo’s man Ray doesn’t like Nicky and Vinny, but he escorts them to wait for Alo by the poolside bar behind his house, just like always. Joey and Jimmy hide across the street from the union hall. When a ton of guys stream out of the hall and get into their cars, Joey wants to know if it’s time to throw his grenade, but Jimmy doesn’t see Dokey. Jimmy hotwires a car, a skill he learned from his father, to follow the guys to an abandoned warehouse, where Dokey and Earl wait for the meeting. Tommy asks Jimmy to come home, but Jimmy refuses to leave town, calling Tommy a coward. Scared and angry, Helen wants to take her whole life with her, defying Tommy’s one suitcase rule, so he takes off to find a bigger car. Meanwhile, Vinny tells Alo that he saw the trouble with Dokey a mile off. Tommy’s smarter than Dokey and easier to work with; they just need to wait to see who comes out on top. Satisfied, Alo orders Ray to make martinis for himself and Nicky, but not for Vinny. While Joey and Jimmy skulk outside, trying to get into position to throw their grenades, Dokey begins the meeting. Pissed off that no one answered his calls, Dokey shoots and kills three of his men. Tommy stops by the diner to tell Jenny he’s changing his life and leaving town. He loves her, and wants her to come with him, and her Dad can come, too. Jenny tries to say no, but Tommy tells her to think it over. The last thing he’ll do before leaving is call her for an answer. Once Nicky and Vinny have departed, Ray tells Alo to watch out, Nicky’s going to make a move. Alo doesn’t care, saying, “When I want him dead, he’ll be dead,” and promptly falls over, foaming at the mouth. Turns out, Vinny put deadly methanol in the vodka, and took all the car keys, so Ray has no chance to get Alo to the hospital in time to save him. Only trouble is, Nicky had to drink some of the vodka too, and now Vinny has to race him to the hospital. Tommy tries to load everyone into a new passenger van, but Helen refuses to leave town without Jimmy, who’s busy at the warehouse. Tommy drops everyone at the Firecracker under Kevin’s care, and picks up Joanie, who’s happy for a chance at a new life. They proceed to the warehouse, in the nick of time to pick up Joey and Jimmy. Unarmed, the grenade has failed to explode, and Dokey’s guys are chasing them. Mr. Reilly takes a nap upstairs, and Samson insists on staying with him. Jenny calls the police, but Samson smirks, promising to kill Reilly before they arrive. Jenny hangs up, then goes upstairs to find Samson in her bedroom, and closes the door behind her. Later, Jenny is alone in the bedroom, throwing the sheets and her wedding ring into a trash bag. Climbing the stairs to his apartment, Samson doesn’t see Jenny, who clubs him unconscious with a pipe. Joanie convinces Jimmy to leave town with the family. Tommy calls the diner, but no one’s there. The van is just getting underway when Dokey and his men screech up to block the street. Tommy intends to talk to Dokey alone, telling Jimmy to get the family out at all costs. Dokey promises to let the Donnellys go if Tommy admits to killing Huey, which he does. Dokey shoots into the van, hitting Helen in the chest. Everyone piles in and Sean drives off. Kevin kicks out a window and shoots Dokey in the chest. Cast 'Main cast' *Jonathan Tucker as Thomas "Tommy" Donnelly *Tom Guiry as James "Jimmy" Donnelly *Billy Lush as Kevin Donnelly *Michael Stahl-David as Sean "Seanny" Donnelly *Olivia Wilde as Jenny Reilly *Keith Nobbs as Joey Ice Cream *Kirk Acevedo as Nicky Cottero ' Recurring Cast' *Kate Mulgrew as Helen Donnelly *Michael Rispoli as Al "Alo" Onatero *Chris Bauer as Hugh "Huey" Farrell *Peter Greene as Derek "Dokey" Farrell *Molly Schaffer as Kate Farrell *Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick as Matthew Farrell *Betsy Beutler as Joanie *Kevin Conway as Ian Reilly *James Badge Dale as Samson Dawlish *Kevin Corrigan as Whitey *Jamie Bonelli as Nadine *Chris Kipiniak as Sharkey *Peter Gerety as Bob the Mouth *Brian Tarantina as Vinnie *Patrick Brennan as Earl *Lauren Bittner as Mary Ann Maxwell Trivia Quotes [last lines] Joey Ice Cream: That was the Donnellys. They could never make it more than a block outta the neighborhood.